About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
Materials in Nuclear Energy Systems (MiNES) 2025
|
| Symposium
|
Materials in Nuclear Energy Systems (MiNES) 2025
|
| Presentation Title |
Evaluation of the SiC Microstructure in TRISO Particles From the AGR Archive |
| Author(s) |
Katherine Montoya, James Wesley Jones, William Cureton, Grant Helmreich, Tyler Gerczak |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Katherine Montoya |
| Abstract Scope |
As tristructural isotropic (TRISO) coated particles are proposed for several advanced reactor types, understanding how the microstructure can impact the irradiation behavior is crucial for the success of the fuel. The particle architecture features a uranium-bearing kernel coated with a porous buffer layer, an inner pyrolytic carbon layer, a silicon carbide layer, and an outer pyrolytic carbon layer. The silicon carbide (SiC) layer provides structural integrity of the particle and acts as a barrier to metallic and gaseous fission products not contained in the kernel during normal and off-normal reactor conditions. Fission product diffusion and mechanical properties are affected by the microstructure of the SiC such as grain size, morphology, and grain boundary type are features relevant to fuel performance. The study presented systematically explores the microstructure of the SiC layer from as-fabricated particles from each AGR irradiation campaign and historic reference materials using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD),synchrotron, and x-ray diffraction (XRD) to determine variations in the SiC layer that could be linked to the irradiation behavior. This work builds on previous work from the AGR program of characterizing the SiC grain size using backscatter electron microscopy paired with image segmentation to provide an engineering specification for the SiC layer. This effort will aid in expanding the database by focusing on the SiC microstructure and associated irradiation performance to better inform fuel performance models. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Undecided |